Post Conviction Relief

Louisiana Post Conviction Relief

Conviction relief, also known as post-conviction relief, are proceedings brought by criminal defendants in an attempt to overturn their conviction and sentence, even after time has been served and fines have been paid. Any person convicted of a crime may file a petition for conviction relief with the District Court where the Conviction took place.

Generally, when seeking post conviction relief a person is convicted of some crime. They may have filed an appeal and been denied or they are seeking a different remedy then trial. There are many different factors that would be looked at when a person seeks post conviction relief: new evidence, illegal sentence, improper sentence, change of law, negative decision by the trial court, or any other scenario that could arise.

Post Conviction relief can help you in a number of ways after your conviction. If you have a drug or sex conviction, you may have to register with local authorities. Post-conviction relief can loosen the restrictions for that requirement – or maybe even eliminate that requirement entirely. Your conviction may restrict or ban your ability to obtain certain licenses. Post-conviction relief can lift those restrictions or bans. Conviction relief can also help in situations that require a more invasive background check. If the conviction was a felony, a qualified attorney in the field of conviction relief might be able to reduce the felony to a misdemeanor, and then expunge it.

Post Conviction Relief Lawyer

Defendants also have the right to seek conviction relief in federal court when the person alleges that their incarceration was brought about due to violations of the federal constitution. There are rules that limit the ability of a federal court to hear issues that were not already raised in state court. Therefore, many defendants will file conviction relief in state court first, and then file in federal court second. This state-then-federal filing is one of many reasons why death-penalty cases are frequently drawn out for years.

The specifics of conviction relief law has numerous variations depending on the details of the situation. The laws differ between juveniles and adults, misdemeanors and felonies, and vary from one state to another. For more information on conviction relief and how these laws may pertain to you, contact an experienced criminal defense attorney today who is skilled in Post Conviction Relief proceedings in New Orleans, Louisiana, Jefferson Parish, St. Bernard Parish, St. Tammany Parish, St. Charles Parish, Plaquemines Parish, and St. John’s Parish.